Day 6 has, finally, arrived!
Apologies for the delay, and thank you all for your patience and lovely reviews. My schedule has been super busy, and things won't be slowing down any time soon. With that in mind, I need to change my set deadlines for finishing the remaining two prompts. I WILL be finishing out all the prompts. However, it will likely take me longer than I first estimated due to time constraints and the schedules I have. I apologize for the inconvenience, but life happens. I will continue to work on the last two prompts when I can, and will them as soon as I am able.
Disclaimer: I own nothing. Fairy Tail belongs to Hiro Mashima, and the lovely Pradesh Family is owned by Desna.
This prompt was inspired by you wonderful reviewers who expressed interest in the events of Lucy Vs. Hestor mentioned in my 'Lick' chapter. This is for you wonderful people. Enjoy!
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Prompt: Huge… 'A Huge Mistake'
Lucy smiled as she took in the lively festivities taking place around her.
She was currently in the White Sea guild hall in Bosco. Following the disbandment of Fairy Tail after Tartaros, the celestial mage had joined Laxus and the male members of the Raijinshuu on their trip to Bosco to visit and stay with Bickslow's family.
Lucy had originally planned to stay in Fiore, but then she'd remembered the handsome young man she'd played a role in rescuing and bringing home from a horrific life in Pergrande's gladiator pits.
Lucy, having been introduced to and quickly enveloped by the welcoming Pradesh Family, had learned about the Ambassador's second son, Zen, and his wife, Ganier. It had been a heart-wrenching story, and the celestial mage had felt for the family's losses. Little had she known that, only a couple of months later, the events of the attack on the Boscan Embassy in Pergrande would be blown wide open.
Three months after the celestial mage had arrived in Bosco, and one month after she had completed testing at the Academy Celestine and been declared S-class, Lucy had taken a mission to patrol the docks in of the town of White Sea. The town had been built around the renowned guild, and thus carried its name. The dock workers had noted that the numbers weren't quite adding up between the number of shipments coming in and being logged compared to those going out. The heightened activity and missing shipments pointed to one thing, black market trading. Bosco had abolished all slave trade and similar merchandise many years back; it was actually one of the first policies Arman had pushed through upon becoming an established Ambassador. That being said, many of the old trading partners, namely Joya, Pergrande, and Seven, had not taken so kindly to the loss of the valuable trading port due to their large investment in those trade rings. In those countries, the slave trade was still alive and thriving. The Boscan embassy had been steadily working with Joya and Seven over the past two years toward placing more restrictions on the trade markets there, if not abolishing slavery all together. They were still in a stalemate with Pergrande, but there was hope that if they could establish seeds for change in Joya and Seven, being two of Pergrande's primary allies and trading partners, they may be able to make some headway in the future.
As she'd expected, during her patrol, Lucy had come across a black market deal between some Pergrandian traders and a group of Boscan dark mages involving a shipment of magical artifacts. Lucy had spied upon the operation and recorded the deal going down before making her move. It had been a nice bonus to find that the silver gate key for Canes Venatici was included among the artifacts being sold.
After swiftly taking down all individuals involved in the deal, the celestial mage had used Gemini's powers to copy the leaders of both groups to find out if other deals had been scheduled. Imagine her surprise when she'd discovered that, not only was the Pergrandian leader a noble heavily favored by the King, but had knowledge on the location and true identity of the Pergrande gladiator known as 'The Dark Eagle'. Needless to say, the celestial mage had promptly informed the Pradesh family whom she'd grown quite attached to.
A retrieval mission had been planned and successfully orchestrated mere weeks after the news of Zen's survival had been made known. The Archangel mage now resided at the primary Pradesh estate with his family and their guests, as he adjusted to life outside of the pits. The homecoming had been four weeks ago. Since then, Zen had been working with several tutors on improving his Boscan and spending time reacquainting himself with his father and brother, as well as his other siblings that had been brought into the family after he'd been taken. While she'd given the family their space to get to know one another, Lucy had also spent some time visiting with the recently recovered mage.
Zen had taken to spending more and more time around and with Lucy, much to the equal parts exasperation and glee of his younger brother Bickslow and Bickslow's teammates who all viewed the sweet mage as a younger sister. The two became close, and one could often find them hanging out together in the large library housed in the Pradesh Estate.
The Archangel mage, after several months of recovery and lessons, had just been initiated as a new mage of the White Sea guild. This was the current cause for celebration. Although, Lucy mused, White Sea never truly needed much of a reason to party and have a good time, just like Fairy Tail.
The celestial mage finished off her amazing strawberry daiquiri and peered around the crowd of dancing bodies. Laxus, Freed and Bickslow had gone on a small mission the day before and were scheduled to be back within the hour. Vander had been cajoled on stage, though very little urging was truly needed. The Shadowquip's strong, husky tenor brought to mind molten sex, writhing bodies, and heated passion. Lucy had to fan herself a bit after taking in that appealing form of leather-clad temptation. Bickslow had been right, the man was trouble with a capital T. Granted, it was times like tonight when the celestial mage found that she may not be so adverse to getting a piece of that trouble to touch, or better yet, taste. Shaking herself out of that heated train of thought, the blonde noted Cristoff had been pulled on stage to play guitar, and Farron, decorated ambassador that he is, was rocking it on the drums. Xally and Kaleb were absent, having been called out to another of the guild's branches to deal with a short issue that'd come up. The sweet water mage had smirked not-so-innocently before they left and instructed Lucy that she would have to take their place in controlling the wilder of the Pradesh siblings; namely Emzadi, Bickslow, and of course, Vander. Speaking of Emzadi, the solar dragon slayer had been an enthusiastic dance partner for the celestial mage. The two ladies had been tearing up the dance floor together until Lucy had begged off to grab a drink and take a short respite. Damn dragon slayers and their stamina! The tall blonde slayer was, even now, out on the dance floor, changing partners on a whim and having a blast.
Searching for the last of the attractive siblings, Lucy frowned upon coming up empty. Where was Zen? The Archangel mage had been sitting with her before Emzadi had pulled her off to dance. The celestial mage had been reluctant at first, knowing that the ex-gladiator was still adjusting to being in crowded spaces and keeping his heightened, battle-trained senses under control. Zen, due to his unfortunate upbringing, was wary and disinclined toward engaging in any intimacy/sexual contact with males. While he was alright around his family, and a few others, he disliked and avoided all non-platonic close-contact of any kind with other males. Being at the guild was difficult for him at times due to his appeal often attracting interest from both genders. He'd already had to politely decline no less than six invitations to share pleasure within the first ten minutes of entering the guild that evening.
The celestial mage's gaze sharpened as she slowly walked her way through the crowd, scanning for the dark mahogany hair of the mage she sought. She'd just talked with Beck, the beast master mage who'd she'd left in discussion with Zen, and been told that the Archangel mage had gone to grab a drink at the bar not even twenty minutes ago. Lucy's frown deepened, she'd been at the bar for roughly half an hour and hadn't seen Zen there at all. While it was possible he had found a partner to share pleasure with, as many mages were doing, Lucy had a feeling in her gut that something was wrong.
Beck, seeing her concern, asked if she'd like his help finding Zen, which she readily accepted with a grateful smile. As Lucy had already cleared the South and West wings of the main floor, the beast master volunteered to check the East end of the dance floor while she continued on toward the Northern corner. As she continued her search, Lucy grew more worried as the feeling of dread settled more heavily in her. Her magic was becoming restless, as if sensing a disturbance she hadn't noticed yet. Trusting her gut, she following the pull of her magic toward one of the walls of the guild's main floor lined with privacy alcoves. The soft pillows and comfy furniture furnishing the spaces were cleaned after every use, and were utilized for a variety of purposes; the intricate runes around the curtains and the control panel of the rooms ensured the utmost privacy and blocked out sound on both sides should the user activate the designated setting. They were used for partners sharing pleasure, reading a book, taking a nap, even strategizing before a mission. Now, they were mostly occupied by parties engaging in the former. As she passed by several occupied alcoves a group of voices drew her gaze to one at the end.
Looking over at the small group conversing before the alcove's entrance had Lucy moving behind a pillar so she could listen in better and not be seen. While she had quickly bonded with a large number of White Sea's mages, there were a select few members who had set her teeth on edge. The small group of five mages had always made her magic stir in wariness and defense whenever they were near.
First, there were the twin plant mages, Flora and Fauna. The two ladies had a known kink for restraints and light bondage; at least that was what Vander had said when Lucy had asked about them. The Shadowquip was one of the few to know about her slight unease around the small group. Myron, an illusion mage, while not powerful, was cunning in his implementation of subtle illusions blending into an individual's already present surroundings. Then there was Soka, a 'wannabe-poison-expert' as Bickslow called him. Following his interest in becoming involved in the Sudepah order, the poison mage had recently started directing his studies and magic down a different path involving creation of aphrodisiacs and other 'sense-enhancing' resources.
Lastly, and the primary leader of the group, was a Boscan celestial mage named Hestor. While the white-blond haired male was appealing like many of his Boscan counterparts, something about the mage's personality and ambitions rubbed Lucy the wrong way. Hestor held four of the Black Keys, in addition to two silver keys on his belt. While not like Angel or Karen, the mage didn't have a close relationship with his spirits, and tended to focus more on their power. She'd never heard of him using them solely as weapons, but the way he discussed them didn't make him much better than the other two aforementioned celestial mages in her book. He'd been one of the members who'd been quick to proposition Zen earlier in the evening. From her observations over the past few months, Hestor was not often turned away, and didn't take it easily when he was.
There was also the fact that Zen was especially susceptible to celestial mages, as she and his family had found out when she'd first met the man. Lucy had luckily been able to gather enough presence of mind and control of her faculties to push him away and step back to clear the air and prevent them from following the strong urging of their magic's to bond and blend. However, following the event, they'd been able to find literature explaining the ties between Archangel mages and Celestial mages. The magical pull was meant to ensure the continuance of Archangel magic, guaranteeing that it would be passed on to new generations. While she would never want for any magic to be lost forever, Lucy truly hated how Zen's magic would basically strip away his control and place him at the mercy of any nearby celestial mage. It was basically a magic-induced rape and enslavement of the Archangel mage. Lucy had made Zen a promise that she would never let her magic take away his will, and stated that she refused to take his freedom of choice. Zen's eyes had brightened with tears and he'd pulled her into a tight hug. Lucy had enjoyed the hug, though she'd been fighting her magic's pull to kiss him and take him the entire time. The internal battles were worth it though. Having to be careful of her alcohol consumption so as to maintain her wits and control about her at all times when he was in the vicinity was a small price to pay for being able to build a strong friendship with the man.
It was this friendship and her intent to guard and protect him from the natures of his very magic which had Lucy honing in on the group before her now.
"Hestor got him?!" Flora or Fauna, Lucy really had trouble telling them apart, asked eagerly.
"Ready and waiting," Myron assured, "Hestor was right. The guy's magic makes him attracted to celestial mages. He didn't have to do much more than walk up and make eye contact with him before he was following behind Boss like a puppy, all eager to please."
"It doesn't look like I'll even need to use any of my supplies," The poison mage chuckled.
"Mmm," The other twin licked her lips. "Think the Boss will be open to sharing? I've wanted a taste since the man first came into the building."
"Down girl," Myron teased, "Hestor is finishing taking his turn now, but said we'd be free to join in a couple of minutes." The illusion mage winked. "He left the curtain 'open' for visitors."
"I heard he hasn't taken a male for pleasure since he came home," Soka shared, "We'll just have to see if we can enlighten him on the pleasures being with another male can bring."
That was it! Lucy couldn't take hearing any more of this. How dare they! The celestial mage had frozen in horror, easily piecing together what had happened to Zen, and what was currently happening to her handsome friend. Hestor and his groupies had crossed the line! Her eyes hidden in the shadows of her bangs, Lucy mentally called to her keys which she now kept to holding in a requip storage space. Hearing her spirits knew the plan and were ready for action, she requiped her whip and stepped out behind the pillar. She was on top of the mages before they'd even noticed her. The twins were swiftly taken down and bound in magic-cancelling rope, courtesy of Virgo, within the next second. Myron turned at the sound and barely had time to register the sight in front of him before a strong right hook sent the illusionist soaring into the wall some twenty feet behind, his head meeting the plaster with a loud 'Crack'. The illusionist's body fell limply to the ground right as knee-to-the-gut and head-kick combo were dished out upon the shocked poison mage. He went down and didn't get up. Virgo trussed the two males up before joining her master before the alcove.
Around them the party continued, undisturbed and unaware of what had occurred. That would soon change. Ripping the curtain aside, the blonde mage's rage increased ten-fold until a dark, violent aura practically surrounded her. This is what finally drew the attention of a few mages nearby, and news quickly moved through the crowd. In the back of her mind, Lucy was aware of the music cutting off and a thick silence descending around her, but her focus was on the scene before her. Hestor was astride Zen, sweet Zen whose eyes, while glazed and hazy, still showed pain and unease. Upon sighting her, however, a glimmer of recognition and hope entered them. She could see some of the haze lift as her own magic ensconced the area and curled around the Archangel. Hestor remained largely unaware of the intruder, too focused on getting his pleasure from the coerced source beneath him. As such, he was taken entirely by surprise when a glowing chord wrapped itself around his neck, yanked him off the built form of the Archangel, and tossed him across and through the wall of the guild, to land outside in one of the combat practice rings.
No one in the crowd dared move a muscle as Hestor was shot through the wall then pursued by a golden blur. This is the scene that the recently returned Raijinshuu, Xally, Kaleb, and Thane walked in on seconds later. Sensing the thrumming power of celestial magic and the enraged thoughts from the celestial mage they'd grown fond of, Laxus and Kaleb quickly rushed toward the gaping hole in the wall. This seemed to break everyone else from their shocked stupor and there was a mass exodus to see the dueling mages outside. The Pradesh siblings and the former Fairy Tail mages were at the front until they neared the wall line with the privacy alcoves. Cristoff and Kaleb paused in passing the torn open alcove upon spying their older brother in disarray inside.
"Zen?!"
The lunar slayer did a quick scan off the groggy mage while Kaleb skimmed his thoughts. The faces of both mages darkened at what they found. "The fuck!?" Cristoff seethed, "Who—?"
"Hestor." Kaleb intoned, face grim.
Zen shook his head, the haze being pushed away by his brother's magic, "I didn't want to but I couldn't stop myself. Fucking pull!" Anger and resentment were prominent in the Archangel's voice.
Another snarl brought everyone's attention to Emzadi standing behind them with their other siblings. The solar slayer had murder in her eyes, "Regardless, your hesitance and rejection earlier this evening should have been deterrent enough. Your magic ensured it can't be considered rape by law as you were 'willing', but it was as good as. The bastard!"
"He'll pay for this." Vander affirmed, eyes focused and promising pain.
Kaleb tilted his head to the side, "Not necessary," he murmured, awe and surprise coloring his voice, "Someone is handling it."
"Must be the person who handled these guys as well," Xally's voice brought their attention to the four beaten and bound mages just outside the alcove area.
"Hector's groupies," Bickslow observed with a frown. The Seith's eyes narrowed on the bruising now forming on Soka's unconscious face, "Wait a second, I know that bruise imprint… shit!" His eyes widened in realization, "Cosplayer!?"
A loud explosion from outside drew everyone's gaze once again to the hole in the wall.
Eyes wide at the surge in familiar celestial energy, Vander cursed, "You mean to tell me that sweet and sassy Ms. Sunshine did this?"
The group, now including Zen, made their way outside. Eyes widened and mouths dropped open in awe and shock of the sight meeting their eyes. Lucy was surrounded in an aura of her magic, eyes glowing gold. She was unmarked and seemed fine were it not for her immense, visible aura she projected, and the pissed off expression on her face that made everyone watching thankful her ire was not directed at them. That privilege was given to the mage at the other end of the decimated field. There was no other way to describe it, really. Deep furrows and craters littered the ground. Boulders and trees were strewn around the field, and scorch marks littered almost every surface. In the midst of it all, Hector was shakily pulling himself out of a crater. The Boscan mage looked fearfully at the glowing form before him. "I-I-I'm s-s-sorry! P-Please!" he begged.
"No, you're not." The goddess in front of him hissed, "But you will be." She promised with a crack of her whip, "You will never force yourself on someone or take advantage of their magic's nature ever again! You shamed your magic and yourself with your decision."
A sparkling shower of light indicated a spirit's arrival. "Punishment, Princess?"
Golden eyes narrowed menacingly on the cowering mage, drawing a whimper, "Yes, Virgo. It's time for punishment."
"Scary Lucy's back!" Bickslow whispered from his hiding spot behind Cristoff.
The other Pradesh siblings turned to look at their fearful brother. They also noticed Freed trying to edge himself behind Laxus, whose face had rapidly paled at the sight before them.
Before anything more could be said, Lucy's voice drew their attention back to the fight, if it could even be called that with how one-sided it was. Hestor didn't stand a chance.
"Everyone deserves to have choices, and that freedom should never be taken away; Not even if it is their very magic driving it to be so! You shall be shown the error of your actions. Stardress Cancer!"
Emzadi nudged Zen, a smirk on her face. "Looks like you have a guardian angel to fight for you."
Zen shook his head, unable to pull his eyes away from the powerful mage before him. While he felt the pull of his magic toward her even now, he was aware that it wasn't as strong as previous times. He realized, with an ache in his chest, that Lucy's magic was protecting him even then; protecting his will; protecting his freedom of choice, even when it had the option of binding him to her for all eternity and strengthening itself from such a bond. The blonde mage's heart was greater than any Zen had ever known, and he felt safe with her. He felt protected; a new, but not entirely unpleasant, feeling for someone from his background.
"No," he smiled, awe crossing his features as he regarded the beauty laying waste to the field and other mage, "No, she's protecting my freedom."
Kaleb suddenly let out a slew of curses, grabbing and shoving his siblings back toward the guild, "Everyone get back!"
"Stardress, Aquarius!"
The eyes of the former Fairy Tail mages widened in realization and horror.
"Shit!" Laxus cursed, "Freed! The barrier's around the field won't hold! We need a rune wall, now!"
The rune mage rushed to comply, and barely finished casting the necessary runes before a massive wave slammed into it and wiped out everything on the field."
"Stardress, Leo!"
"Double shit! Freed!" Bickslow shouted.
"Everyone cover your eyes!" The rune mage ordered. Moments later a blinding light encompassed the field, and several explosions were heard.
"Stardress, Cancer! Taurus, Scorpio, unison raid!"
"Anything for yooou, Miss Lucy!"
"We are!"
"Sandstorm Axe: Aldabaran!" The voices of Taurus and Scorpio called.
"Stardress, Taurus!"
As the sand storm stopped buffeting the protective barrier, silenced enveloped the area.
As the dusty haze slowly cleared, soft footsteps approached the group of siblings and Fairy Tail mages. The rest of the White Sea guild filled the area behind them. A shadowy figure soon took shape. Stopping a few feet away the silhouette tossed a large mass toward the group. The bald, soaked, burned and heavily beaten figure of Hestor lay at their feet. The dust finally cleared, revealing Lucy in her Taurus Stardress. The blonde was lightly panting from the magical exertion but only seemed slightly ruffled in appearance.
The blonde coolly flipped her long hair over her shoulder before bowing to Kaleb.
"I apologize, Master Kaleb. I let my anger get the better of me. It won't happen again." Straightening, she observed the hole in the guild wall behind them, "I will also pay for all damages to the guild hall. And I will help Virgo fix the practice field to its former state tomorrow once I've recovered my magic."
Turning her gaze down at the crumpled form at their feet, she grimaced, "I suppose he'll need some medical care. I'll leave that in your capable hands, Cristoff."
The blonde, not addressing the looks of shock, awe, and surprise being sent her way, then proceeded to walk passed the group and calmly exit the guild to head back to the Pradesh estate.
Everyone was silent for a while longer as they digested what had just happened; Vander, being Vander, didn't let it last long. He gave a low wolf-whistle, which brought Kaleb out of his surprised state to cuff him upside the head. "Down boy."
The mindbender turned his attention back to the mage at his feet, and sighed, "Cristoff…?"
The Lunar slayer grimaced, but nodded, albeit reluctantly, "On it."
"Damn. Remind me never to piss Ms. Sunshine off." Vander hummed with a smirk.
Xally snickered, patting her youngest brother on his shoulder, "There's a reason all stories about the Furies cast them as women, dear brother."
Emzadi gave a fanged smile of agreement.
As the crowds slowly made their way back inside, all murmuring over what had happened. Kaleb was quick to issue orders to not spread or talk about what'd happened upon the request of Zen himself. They knew their Father would not take what had happened to Zen lightly and the Archangel mage just wanted to put the incident behind them and move toward the future.
As his older brother left with the intent on hunting down his blonde warrior maiden, Kaleb couldn't help the smile that covered his face. His brother's future would be bright indeed with that spitfire at his side.
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I look forward to hearing your feedback :)
Until next time,
-JB